Treales Church Of England Primary School.

Policy For Supporting Pupils With Special Educational Needs

Objectives of the SEN Policy

The school is committed to a policy of inclusion that aims to:

Meet the requirements of pupils with special educational needs so that they have an opportunity to reach their potential.

Help pupils with special educational needs to grow in confidence so that they can become increasingly independent Learners.

Offer all pupils with special educational needs full access to a broad, balanced and relevant curriculum including the Foundation Stage curriculum and the National Curriculum.

Take account of the views of the child when making provision.

Take account of the wishes of the parent/carer and encourage them to take a full part in supporting their child’s education.

Definitions

For the purpose of the special educational needs policy the school has adopted the guidance in the special educational needs code of practice (2001) which sets out the following definitions:

Children have special educational needs if they have a learning difficulty which calls for provision to be made for them.

Children have a learning difficulty if they: a) Have a significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children of the same age; or b) Have a disability which prevents or hinders them from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children of the same age in schools within the area of Lancashire LA

Children are not regarded as having a learning difficulty solely because the language or form of language of their home is different from the language in which they will be taught.

Arrangements for coordinating special educational needs provision

The Headteacher, Mrs PM Hewitt, is responsible for the management of educational provision for pupils with special educational needs and, as the special educational needs coordinator (SENCO), she is responsible for coordinating the day to day provision for pupils with special educational needs. The role of SENCO involves:

 Overseeing the day to day operation of the special educational needs policy  Coordinating the provision for children with special educational needs particularly through School Action and School Action Plus  Managing the work of learning support assistants  Overseeing the records of all children with special educational needs  Coordinating the process of liaising with parents of children with special educational needs  Contributing to the in-service training of all staff  Liaising with external agencies including the Local Authority’s (LA) support and Educational Psychology services, the Local Health Authority, Social Services and Voluntary bodies.  Coordinating the process of identifying children who may have special educational needs  Managing resources including the deployment of staff who support children with special educational needs  Monitoring the progress of children with special educational needs

Admission arrangements

The school has a detailed admission policy (see school brochure). In following this admission policy the governors are committed to ensuring that all children, including those with special educational needs, will be treated fairly. Children will not be discriminated against as a consequence of their special educational needs.

Facilities

The school is accessible to wheelchairs and there is a disabled toilet and shower on site. The facilities for children with special educational needs are reviewed annually and the governors work to anticipate future needs, where possible. For example, if it is known that a child with a particular disability is to be admitted to the school the governors will take all reasonable steps to ensure that appropriate facilities are provided.

Resource Allocation

Resources are allocated to support children with special educational needs as part of the budget setting process. This process takes account of the needs of the children and the resources available to the school. Currently in 2007/8 the school provides a range of resources to help children with special educational needs to make progress in Literacy and numeracy. There is also 15 hours learning assistant time provided each week and 1 hour teacher support for a statemented child, purchased from the Lancashire Education Inclusion Service. Time is also provided for the SENCO to meet with parents, external agencies, children and staff. The resources to support children with statements of special educational need are delegated to the school and are used to meet the conditions set out in the statement.

Identification of children’s needs

The school recognises the importance of early identification of need if provision for children with special educational needs is to be effective. The needs of children with special educational needs will be identified by:

 The monitoring of children’s performance by the class teacher as part of the ongoing observation and assessment  A review of the results of baseline assessment when children join the school in the reception class  A review of progress against the objectives in the National Literacy strategy and National Numeracy Strategy  A review of progress against the National Curriculum level descriptions  The use of standardised screening or assessment tools where appropriate  The use of specific expertise in carrying out assessment where appropriate for pupils on School Action Plus

Arrangements for supporting children with special educational needs

STEP 1 Following the identification of children’s needs, support will be given to help them overcome the barriers to learning. This support will initially focus on:

 Setting suitable learning targets  Responding to pupils’ diverse learning needs  Overcoming potential barriers to learning

STEP 2 When a class teacher or the SENCO, in consultation with parents, feels that despite the support provided above a child is not making adequate progress the provision of a School Action programme will be considered. The process of considering further support will involve:

 A detailed review of the child’s progress  Further assessment of the child’s strengths and weaknesses by the SENCO  Consultation with the child’s parents  Discussion with the child, where appropriate

If further support is required through School Action this will involve:

 Planning a programme of further support additional to and different from the support available to all children  The creation of an Individual Education Plan  A termly review meeting with parents to consider the child’s progress (the child should be involved wherever possible)

STEP 3 If the child is failing to make adequate progress despite having an individualised programme and/ or concentrated support as part of the School Action initiative the provision of a School Action Plus programme will be considered. The process of considering further support will involve:

 A detailed review of the child’s progress  Specialist advice on the further assessment of the child’s needs and possible support programmes/materials  Consultation with the child’s parents  Discussion with the child, where appropriate

If further support is required through School Action Plus this will involve:

 The creation of a new Individual Education Plan  Planning a programme of further support with specialist advice  A termly review meeting with parents to consider the child’s progress (the child should be involved wherever possible)  Applying for ESAP funding

STEP 4 If the child continues to give significant cause for concern the school may request a statutory assessment from Lancashire LA. This process will be carried out in close consultation with the child’s parents and will follow the detailed guidance in the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice (2001). A copy of this document is available to parents, staff and governors in the school office.

Access to the curriculum

The school is committed to a policy of ensuring that children with special educational needs have access to a broad and balanced curriculum and the full range of activities available to all children. The following strategies are in place to achieve this objective:

 All teachers plan to give children with special educational needs access to a broads curriculum through the use of: Differentiated planning Different resources/materials Different types of questions Different types of response  Support is provided to help all pupils with special educational needs to access the broad curriculum  Support provided for children with special educational needs is timetabled to ensure that the children do not miss particular areas of the curriculum whilst receiving support  Opportunities are provided for children with special educational needs to participate in all school activities, wherever possible. Such activities include extra curricular activities, school concerts/productions, visits to places of interest and outdoor pursuits centres.

Transition to/from other schools

The school works closely with parents/carers to ensure that children with special educational needs are catered for when they start school. Where appropriate, there is also liaison with the Early Years setting where the child has received pre-school education and support.

As pupils move on to other schools, and in particular, to secondary education a meeting is held with the receiving high school to inform them of the child’s needs. Detailed records, including IEP’s, are passed on to the receiving school so that appropriate provision can be made. Where children have a statement of special educational need every attempt will be made to ensure that the review in the summer term of year 5 will identify future provision so that parents can take this into account when selecting a secondary school for their child.

Working with parents

The school is fully committed to working closely with parents/carers of all children with special educational needs. The school will:

 Inform parents when a child is first identified with special educational needs  Consult with parents regarding the school-based support for their child  Explain the purpose of any intervention or programme of action  Inform parents about the parent partnership service available to give them advice  Encourage parents to participate in their child’s educational career at the school  Inform parents about support services in the voluntary sector where appropriate  Support and advise parents during the statutory assessment process

Training

A programme of training will be implemented for 2007/8 which focuses upon the following areas:

 Further training for Headteacher (SENCO) on Enhanced School Action Plus Scheme (ESAP funding)  Training for staff on strategies fo dealing with challenging behaviour  Training for Learning Support Assistants on providing support for children with special educational needs, including the use of ICT and supporting children with Asperger’s Syndrome  Training for the Headteacher, SENCO, teaching staff and learning Support Assistants in strategies to support children with Dyspraxia  Local cluster meetings for updates

External Support

The school makes use of the assistance of a number of support services in working with children with special educational needs. These services include:  The Lancashire Education Inclusion Service  The Lancashire Educational Psychology Service  The Local Health Authority

There are also links with:  The Lancashire Education Welfare Service  Lancashire Social services

Monitoring and Evaluation of Special Educational Needs’ Provision

The governing body monitors the quality of provision for children with special educational needs by:

 Receiving reports on the progress of children with special educational needs from the Headteacher (SENCO)  Receiving reports on the impact of provision on children’s broad achievements and experiences  Receiving reports from the Special Educational Needs’ Governor on the quality of provision  Receiving reports on parental responses to the provision for special educational needs  Receiving a report from the Local Authority on special educational needs provision every 3 years as part of the LA’s statutory monitoring duty

Complaints

Where a parent makes a complaint concerning the provision for children with special educational needs it is hoped that it can be resolved by the Headteacher working with the parents and external agencies, including parent partnership. If this course of action fails to resolve the complaint, the Governing Body of the school will follow the complaints procedure which has been adopted. A copy of the procedure is available from the school office.

Policy to be reviewed: Autumn 2013.